Qualifying Exam
by Illegitimi
Summary: A short drabble inspired by 'Match Me' by x nihilo. A slight continuation of and insight between the relationship of Isane and Kurotsuchi after their initial 'date'.


Disclaimer: I do not own _Bleach_ and I make no profit from anything that I may do.

**A/N:** The genesis of this little drabble stems from reading** x** **nihilo's** _Match Me_. I've always had a bizarre fascination with the Twelfth Division's captain, and when they paired him with Isane it struck me as a perfect match. Those two were made for each other.

Also, this is my first Bleach fic so I apologize for any mistakes, errors, or ooc-ness that anyone might find.

**Qualifying Exam**

Isane sat at the table reserved for the Twelfth Division in the Soul Society Canteen, and reading over the partially written manuscript that she was preparing to show Captain Kurotsuchi. As she had been helping the captain with his own _Seireitei Communication_ articles he had also in turn offered his own input on her own desire to become published. Sitting in front of her and being worried by her nervous fingers was her first draft of her own article titled: _Sensory-Nerve-Derived Neuro Peptides as Possible Gene Therapy Targets. _It was a daring monster of a project but one that had been bouncing around inside her head for some time now. Ever since she had gotten her hands on a slightly recent living world medical journal the idea of manipulating genes in order to stop or even reverse the effects of disease fascinated her. And the one person that she knew who was an _expert_ at manipulating the human body was Captain Kurotsuchi, and his opinions on the matter meant a lot to her.

Of course, it was only his _medical_ opinion that meant so much to her. Right? _Of course_...

The few times that they had met after their initial meeting at table eight had all been either in his Division's Office or while he was waiting at hers for a meeting with her captain while a member or two of his were being treated. At first the time spent between the two was more then slightly awkward. She was nervous and hesitant about not only what he would think of her professional opinions, but also what he must be thinking about her _period_. She was still stymied as to his open and forthright attitude towards her. It just didn't seem to fit somehow with everything that she had heard (and even seen) in regards to the strange and slightly reclusive Twelfth Division Captain. It felt as if she was always waiting for the hammer to drop. As if maybe he really _didn't_ care about her medical knowledge or even her company, but was just biding his time instead to try and seduce her into being a test subject for some experiment that he had set up and waiting. She wondered if he was only patiently waiting for the perfect test specimen to show up.

But it _never_ happened. Their times together were clinical, professional, and above all else respectful. He _never_ raised his voice to her or tried to verbally beat her down with sarcasm or intellectual superiority as he did with so many others. If anything his voice was calm, collected, and even occasionally annoyingly neutral. Nothing to make even the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. Not even once. If she was_ really_ honest with herself she would even go so far as to say that he had been respectful. The perfect gentleman.

He had also proved thus far to be the perfect scholar. He would answer any and all questions, and no matter of inane or nonsensical they might seem to someone of his caliber. When the verbal explosions or castigation's never came she couldn't help but become suspicious, and that led her to very hesitantly and tentatively push at the invisible boundaries of his patience. She _wanted_ to see the insanity that she knew was there. She _needed_ to see her fears and doubts come to fruition so that she could be proven correct. But they _never_ did. All that she did see was a calm courtesy that would have put the Sixth Division Captain to shame. One time though, she just happened to glance in the reflection of a window his face watching her. It had been raining out, and she had gone momentarily to the glass panel to look outside after one of their medical debates about tissue regeneration. Because of the weather she had felt slightly out of sorts, and she had _purposefully_ made inane comments in order to see his reaction. When none had come as expected she had gone to the window to stare out at the gloomy day and ponder her hypothesis about his personality. Kurotsuchi was behind her rummaging through a few old journals to give her on the subject when in the reflection she noticed that he had stood up and was silently staring at her back. It was hard to tell exactly, but it appeared as if he was _grinning_ at her. It wasn't that his grins were uncommon. More often then not he could be found grinning, but it was the _type_ of grin that he had been sporting that gave her a moment to pause. It wasn't insane, or evil, or even sarcastically impatient.

It was_ patiently_ _knowing_. It was as if he had known all along what she had been thinking about and trying to get at. But when she turned around to confront it his face had been back in the pile of journals and quickly perusing them for their importance. Like it had never happened. She blinked rapidly and wondered if it really had happened after all.

Isane worried the ends of her manuscript nervously. This was the first time that she had _ever_ shown anyone outside her own captain her medical writings, and Captain Unohana had never even looked at this one in particular. The only person so far that knew of her secret little project was herself, and soon the only other person would be Captain Kurotsuchi. She couldn't help but be afraid as well as expectant as to what he would think of it.

Because it was his professional and medical opinion that meant so much to her right now, right? _Of course_.

She wasn't too familiar with many of the members of Squad Twelve, and so she received more then a few suspicious stares as she sat at their table all alone and out of place. She received and returned small, polite nods, but no one stopped to make any further inquires. It was if she was somehow marked. No one sat anywhere near her, and she could see out of the corners of her eyes people whispering and talking about her.

Isane couldn't help but flush under such close scrutiny. Didn't they know that she was only there to gain an insight into her medical findings from a colleague and professional? _Of course_ that was all that it was. But just in case she flipped the manuscript over quickly so that it lay face down and not quite as obtrusive.

Just as she was about to forget the whole thing due to a sudden rush of insecurity and embarrassment her possible collaborator arrived. She could tell that it was him even before looking up and spying him with her own eyes because the mood of not only the table that she sat at changed, but the entire room as well. It became a bit more hushed and expectant. Eyes shifted away nervously or people looked brazenly at the quiet but confident figure in captain's robes as he made straight for her.

Isane straightened her papers in front of her and even unconsciously and imperceptibly smoothed out her own clothing. She looked up at the figure standing before her on the other side of the table and a small but genuine smile graced her soft features. She started to rise respectfully but was waived back with an almost languid gesture of his hands.

"Please, no need." Kurotsuchi smiled and sat himself down comfortably across from her. He boldly eyed her papers and then herself with interest. A brow rose speculatively, and an sudden gleam shown from deep within his golden eyes.

_What arresting eyes he has!_ The thought came unbidden and hit her like a lightening bolt. She froze in terror as if he could sense her thought. She felt like a rabbit caught in the twin, golden orbs of a semi-truck bearing down upon her. She had no idea if she should run or stay in place and just take her chances.

"What have you got there, Isane?" Kurotsuchi very slowly moved his hand forward until only the tips of two of his fingers touched the outer part of the top page of her manuscript. They lay there unmoving as he smiled inquisitively at her predicament. A finger tapped silently and slowly upon the paper beneath it. It beat out a soundless but patient rhythm.

He could tell that she was nervous for some reason. He could not only see it, but more importantly he could _smell_ it too. As well as something else...Without anyone noticing his actions (and least of all_ her_) he delicately sniffed the air before him. The pheromones were numerous, and at first his olfactory cortex was momentarily over-loaded. The smells and their various origins hit him like a tsunami, and it took even _his_ advanced and modified olfactory epithelium and prefrontal cortex a moment to sift through and categorize all their possible meanings. But when they did he was rewarded with a bonanza of information unlike anything from any experiment that he had ever conducted.

Her scents were arraigned like the notes on a scale. The deepest and smoothest timbered scent was that of her own, natural aroma. Her natural scent of calming lavender that was with her at all times was the foundation of what he could first detect. That smell was something that he had started to associate most with her. Thanks to his heightened senses he could always tell if she had been where he was previously. One time, when he had stopped by Division Four to pick up some supplies that he just didn't have the patience to wait for had he gone and had them ordered on his own he could immediately tell that she had just recently been in the very store room that he was in. Her natural perfume had still hung tantalizingly in the air around him.

Next higher on the scale were the ever-present scents that pervaded the clothing of every healer; antiseptics, herbs, the smell of other people's body odor, and a various other sundry of medicinal products clung to her. He could even smell the fresh, linen scent of bandages if he tried hard enough. They weren't attractive smells necessarily but they did constitute an important part of her make up so they were acceptable.

Higher up on the scale he could smell her uncertainty and nervousness. He didn't need to see the fine sheen of sweat over her top lip or the small bead of perspiration at her left temple to know that she was seriously fretting about something. The smell almost constituted fear, and he clinically , coldly, and even amusedly wondered what it was that had her in such a turmoil that the slightly sweet but sour smell was so prevalent. Was it him? No, she was pretty much used to his presence by now. So it must be the papers before her.

But as interesting a mystery that those unknown as of yet writings were what _really_ caught and held his interest was the highest, sweetest, and most provocative note on the scent scale._ It _was something that he could not rightly interpret in order to categorize. _It_ was something that seemed to tease his cerebral cortex to no end, and it was swiftly causing him to become frustrated. _It _was as if every time he tried to academically analyze the data something deeper within tried to thwart the process. It was as if his own body on some mysterious, cellular level was trying to tell him something, but what it was he had no idea.

How confounding and maddening it all was! What. Was. _It_?

Isane could see things shifting deep within his eyes, and the shifts were smooth, calculating, and rapid. It was all too fascinating, but it was also for some reason a bit too daunting. The golden gleam of his eyes would harden one moment and then soften the next. The corners of his mouth would twitch almost imperceptibly as he unknowingly allowed a small crack into his thought process.

"C-Captain?"

Her voice was low timbered so that no one near by could hear, but the worry and concern in her voice was loud enough that it broke him from his momentary musings.

Kurotsuchi wiped the emotions from his visage and raised a brow in mild, good humor. "Yes, Isane?"

"Are you...alright?"

The smile grew on his face, but to her consternation he never gave up his digital claim to her stack of papers.

"Why_ wouldn't_ I be?"

Isane's brows drew together in a delicate frown. "I don't know...You seemed to be wool gathering there for a moment." She suddenly gave a wry smile and a light chuckle of her own. "You haven't had a Petite-Mal Seizure, have you? Do I need to call Captain Unohana to-"

"Absolutely _not_," he said with more then a slight amount of indignity. Imagine, him of all people succumbing to such a silly thing as a seizure...

"I am perfectly _fine_, I'll have you know. I may not be perfection, but I _am _beyond the scope of having seizures._ How rude_..."

His brusque tone in no way offended Isane. In fact, she was more then a little amused by the statement. Leave it to him to believe that he was above and beyond such a chemical reaction. Trying to quell the smirk that was quivering on her mouth from forming she nodded almost sagely at his comment, and as if he was not only right but also one of her more unruly patients.

"_Of course_ captain, I should have realized that. Please forgive the temerity of such an assumption. Since you show no signs of drooling or letting loose your bowels I can only assume that such an occurrence never happened."

Kurotsuchi's affronted mien dissapeared as he nodded at her demure concession. "Should I feel such an episode on my near horizon I will be sure to inform you. If however, I am unable to give fair enough warning I will also be sure to send over for analysis all excretions produced from said episode."

The analysis was said with such aplomb and dryness that Isane gave a very unladylike-like snort of laughter. In horrifying embarrassment she quickly covered her face with both hands, but in doing so it left her manuscript open to any and all invaders.

In the blink of an eye Kurotsuchi took full advantage of her discomposure, and after snatching the now free paper work from her grasp he greedily and unabashedly started to peruse it. His eyes widened in interest as he started to read it.

"Oh! _Oh no_...wait! _Give that back_!" She lunged across the table and tried to snatch it back but Kurotsuchi just shifted around enough so that her hands could grab at nothing but air.

"My, my, my! _Gene therapy_? How _interesting_!" With one hand holding the manuscript in front of his face the other patiently and gently gave her searching hands small taps and slaps.

Seeing that she wasn't going to be rewarded with anything more then his hand pushing hers away she sat back down in dejected silence. Looking around at the other diners around them she saw that their small tussle was now the central focus of the dining room. It made her want to slide down under the table and crawl away in embarrassment.

"Pay the ignoramuses no attention, Isane," he said turning the page and not looking over at her. "They will go back to their troughs soon enough."

Isane nodded and silently looked down at her hands clasped before her on the table top. All she could do was study the wood grain of the table in great detail. Without ever looking up she sat unmoving as the pages being turned one after another sounded like thunder to her ears. After what seemed like an eternity she heard a sigh and then saw the manuscript being slid back across the table to her until it rested once again against the tips of her fingers.

She just _couldn't_ look up. She _didn't _want to see the possible patronizing look on his masked face. It would be too much to bear at this point. Maybe she could just quietly take the papers, slip it under her arm and slither on out, and never to show her face again...

The moments silently ticked by.

Isane closed her eyes in dejection and humiliation. Just as she was about to fulfill her fantasy of making an unobtrusive as possible exit the silence was broken by Kurotsuchi tapping the manuscript lightly.

"Vice-Captain Kotetsu?"

Isane swallowed a large gulp, nodded, but still kept her eyes averted.

The silence was deafening.

"_Isane_?"

It was then that her eyes snapped upwards towards the man sitting across from her. It wasn't the fact that he had used her given name. He had been doing that for some time now, and at her behest (though she certainly did not use _his_ given name of Mayuri). No, it was the tone that the name was spoken with. It was soft, understanding, and some how very intimate. It was that intimacy that seemed to awaken something deep inside her and thrum with pleasure. It was startling, unexpected, and very, _very_ appealing somehow. It was as if she wanted (no, _needed_...)to hear her name spoken _just like that_ again, but in a different place and under _much_ different circumstances...

Her mouth opened in a silent 'o' and her eyes widened into two, slate-gray saucers.

His nostrils flared and a hum was heard deep within his chest.

Neither said a word.

Neither said a word that is until a small snicker was heard from some where off to the side. It stopped abruptly when Kurotsuchi slowly, deliberately, and with a malicious gleam in his eyes turned towards the offending interruption. Without having to leak even a minuscule amount of reiatsu the ignorant and hapless shinigami under his scrutiny lowered his eyes and folded his shoulders forward in a posture of complete submissiveness.

"Have I told you of the newest experiment that I have been considering, Vice Captain Kotetsu? I have been debating about possibly bringing back the living world's archaic and inhuman form of psychiatric therapy known as_ lobotomy_. It was occasionally effective but _always_ debilitating, and it was certainly _messy_..." He might have been talking to Isane but his attention was focused solely on the offending diner. "I just need to find the right _specimen_..."

Isane lowered her head slightly in order to hide the small smile that crept up on her lips.

"Isn't that where the frontal lobe of the brain is removed, Captain?"

"Not just _removed_, Vice Captain. More like _hacked_ out.. Or at least that is how _I _would do it.."

Gulps and gasps could be heard audibly around them.

With a flick of his eyes Kurotsuchi turned his attention back to Isane and seemingly dismissing those around them. Without even a second thought he went back to his companion and the reason for their meeting in the first place.

"This manuscript, Isane-"

"I_ know_, Captain...I know that it isn't exactly something of your caliber or something that you would call very good, but I was just thinking-"

"Please, do not either interrupt me nor assume what my conclusion would be."

Isane flushed brightly at the gentle remonstration at her assumptions.

"Now, if I may? Based on what I found when arriving I can only rightly conclude that you wanted me to read this document?" He cocked his head to the side and raised an eye brow. "As such you must have _also_ wanted my professional opinion on said document."

Isane nodded and worried her lower lip with her two, top teeth.

Kurotsuchi couldn't help but become suddenly fascinated by the display, because it meant that behind her teeth and the bottom lip caught captive by them was her _tongue_...

He mentally shook his head and plowed on with his analysis. "After reading what you have here, and I can also rightly conclude that this is nothing more then your abstract, is that what you have here is something not only note worthy but scientifically and medically sound. There are however a few changes that I would make, but they are minor and merely possible, alternative avenues that you should consider investigating."

Isane was speechless. Never in a _million years_ had she thought that he would say such a thing. At best she had expected a slight show of interest with a few helpful comments. Certainly not his approval or encouragement. The happiness that she felt started to spread through her at an alarming rate. Her breathing increased and her eyes started to glow with a pride that could not be concealed.

Kurotsuchi gave a chuckle that started soft but grew louder at watching her reactions. He just couldn't help himself. The total change that pervaded her demeanor was astounding, enjoyable, and enlightening.

Seeing her eyes loose the normally hesitant look and being replaced in stead with excitement sent a certain amount of warmth through him. The warmth was a new experience, but enjoyable none the less. And the enlightenment came with the realization that he l_iked_ how he was feeling. Right now, right here, and only with her.

It was all _very_ astonishingly interesting. He wondered what it could all mean...

Without even thinking twice (and let alone even once) Isane jumped up with a girlish squeal and leaning across the table hugged Kurotsuchi If she felt him stiffen in her arms she gave no note of it.

"Oh Captain! _Thank you_! You have _no idea_ what that all means to me! That means that I can...Oh! But I've got to finish reading up on a few things and possibly finding out if..." She pulled back from the hug and here eyes lost focus as she made a mental list in her head of all that she now had to do.

"Excuse me Captain, but I have to get back to the Fourth and finish up on some official duties so I can get back to my writing..." Isane nodded as if satisfied by what lay ahead. She looked down at the man across from her and bowed in gratitude. "Thank you again _so much_ for reading and reviewing! I'll catch up with you again soon."

Before Kurotsuchi could say or do anything the Fourth Division's Vice Captain dashed off in a head long run out of the dining room, and leaving behind her a sea of open mouths. That also included the man that she had just been engaged with in a very public display of affection. But before anyone could turn to look at him he had composed himself back to his usual, calm demeanor. Slowly rising from his seat as if nothing untoward had just happened he straightened his robes, and after tucking safely under his arm her forgotten manuscript he walked more sedately then his companion had out of the dinning hall. It was noted however by furtive eyes that his walk held a bit more of a swagger then usual, and that the smile on his face was not as insanely cruel as it normally would be. What _really_ made people stop and stare outright was the fact that a soft, jaunty whistling could be heard as he passed them all by.


End file.
